New Low-Cost Cathode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries to Revolutionize Electric Vehicle Market
TapTechNews September 25th news, a research team led by Chen Hailong from the Georgia Institute of Technology has developed a low-cost ferric chloride cathode material for lithium-ion batteries, and this achievement will greatly improve the electric vehicle market and the entire lithium-ion battery market.
The relevant research results were published in the latest issue of Nature Sustainability magazine on September 23rd, and TapTechNews attaches the DOI: 10.1038/s41893-024-01431-6.
Professor Chen Hailong said, For a long time, people have been looking for a lower-cost and more sustainable alternative cathode material. I think we have now found one.
It is introduced that this revolutionary material is only 1-2% of the cost of traditional cathode materials, and can store the same amount of electricity. The cathode material affects capacity, energy and efficiency, and plays an important role in the performance, life and affordability of the battery.
The battery cost accounts for about 50% of the total cost of current electric vehicles, which also leads to most new energy vehicle sales prices being higher than those of fuel vehicles. Our cathode can change the game rules, which will greatly improve the electric vehicle market - and the entire lithium-ion battery market.
Before this, there were only four types of cathode materials in the world that were successfully used in the commercial production of lithium-ion batteries, and this material is likely to be the fifth type, which will promote a major progress in battery technology - the development of all-solid-state lithium batteries.
The Chen Hailong team has developed a low-cost and sustainable solution: using a FeCl3 cathode, a solid electrolyte and a lithium metal anode, the cost of the entire system is only 30-40% of the current lithium-ion battery, and the working voltage is higher than that of the commonly used lithium iron phosphate battery.
This can not only make electric vehicles much cheaper than internal combustion engine cars, but also provides a new and promising form of large-scale energy storage and enhances the resilience of the power grid. In addition, our cathode will greatly improve the sustainability and supply chain stability of the electric vehicle market.